


L'esprit de l'escalier

by unspeakable3



Series: welcome to the most noble and ancient house of black [85]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Black Family-centric (Harry Potter), Drabble, Drabble Collection, F/M, Gen, Oblivious Regulus Black, POV Regulus Black, Prompt Fic, Prompt Fill, Pureblood Culture (Harry Potter), Pureblood Society (Harry Potter), Regulus Black-centric, Teenagers, The Noble and Most Ancient House of Black, Wordcount: 100-500
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-25
Updated: 2019-11-25
Packaged: 2021-02-26 06:21:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 449
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21559243
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/unspeakable3/pseuds/unspeakable3
Summary: It would be hell, but at least he’d get a new pair of shoes out of it.
Relationships: Regulus Black & Original Character(s)
Series: welcome to the most noble and ancient house of black [85]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1395592
Comments: 1
Kudos: 18





	L'esprit de l'escalier

They were forced to pause at the top of the fourth-floor landing while they waited for the staircases to realign themselves. The stairs moved slowly, stone balustrades creaking and groaning. Regulus hitched the strap of his satchel further up his shoulder.

“I received a letter from your cousin today,” said Clementine, in a far-too-casual manner.

He snapped his head around. “Which?” he asked sharply.

“Oh, sorry. Narcissa,” she said. Regulus found that he could breathe again. “It included my formal invitation to the ball. She’s on the committee, isn’t she?”

“Vice Chairwitch.”

“Yes, that’s it.”

The staircase ground into place and they were able to continue their descent.

“Anyway, I wasn’t sure if I was going to go,” Clementine said. “But Mamma said it would be a shame to deprive her of the opportunity to dust off the family jewellery. Will you be attending?”

“I don’t expect I’ll be able to convince Mother - or Cissa, for that matter - otherwise,” he sighed.

“Yes. Of course.”

Regulus would much rather stay at home with a book and a slice of Kreacher’s tarte au citron than attend an undoubtedly ostentatious and frivolous ball, but since Sirius had gone and abandoned him he wasn’t really left with much choice. With his persuasive cousin on the committee and his mother desperate to _show him off_ at any opportunity… it would be hell, but at least he’d get a new pair of shoes out of it.

“I suppose I’ll have to find an escort,” she said, turning to rub the elbow of the suit of armour that stood outside the lower years’ Transfiguration classroom; she’d always claimed it was lucky though Regulus wasn’t entirely sure what the logic process behind that was.

“Yes, I suppose you will.”

“Demetrius Parkinson asked me in Defence earlier.”

He shot her a sideways glance. She was inspecting her fingernails. “I see.”

“He’s perhaps a bit too big, though. Maria said he and I would look ridiculous together in photographs.”

“Right.”

Ridiculous was an understatement. Parkinson was an _oaf._

“She said I ought to go for someone a bit shorter, you know? So we’d be able to dance properly.”

“Mm.”

“But I suppose I will have to go with him if no one else asks me…”

“Yes.”

She was very quiet for the rest of the day. It was only weeks later, when Regulus had to endure staring at the back of Parkinson’s potato-like head for the _entire_ duration of double History of Magic, that the thought occurred to him that perhaps Clementine had been hinting that she would like _him_ to ask her to the ball, and that perhaps he should have done so before it was too late.


End file.
